ABC 2 tonight 15 Feb 2012 10:22 AEDT - The Thin Blue Line documentary

[gary]

Ever dreamt of being a documentary film maker?

Imagine making a 103 minute film that is so powerful that it puts in motion
the freeing of an innocent man that had been imprisoned for life on a charge
of murdering a Texan police officer. A man that at one point had been facing the
death penalty.

Master film maker Errol Morris achieved precisely that with his 1988 documentary
film, "The Thin Blue Line".

This is not just a good documentary, it is a perfect documentary and as
good as film making gets.

In a series of interviews and cross-cuts to re-enactments, the narrative
of a fateful night in Dallas and its aftermath unfold. With beautifully framed
images as people speak directly to camera, combined with brilliant editing
and the mesmerizing original soundtrack by composer Philip Glass, "The
Thin Blue Line" is not only an incredible piece of story telling but
also in its own right a stunning piece of art.

In 2001, the film was selected for preservation on the National Film Registry
of the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

This documentary was shown on ABC 1 on Sunday 12th Feb but is
being repeated tonight, Wed 15 Feb at 10:22 AEDT on ABC 2.

Opening theme to The Thin Blue Line by composer Phillip Glass here -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxhUPZiMh8I

[Atlantis69 (Simon)]

Can be viewed here for a limited time:
http://www.abc.net.au/iview/#/view/891386

[gary]

Originally Posted by Atlantis69

Can be viewed here for a limited time:
http://www.abc.net.au/iview/#/view/891386

Thanks Simon!

[Atlantis69 (Simon)]

I made a "backup" so I can watch it when I get some time... always like a good documentary

[GrahamL]

That was a pretty chilling watch the Other night Gary .

How good was the way he took you through the presumption of guilt to the likleyhood of innocence ?

The tape at the end was just gut wrenching in that a man faced
death right in the face all those years previous over this mess.

[gary]

Originally Posted by nightstalker

That was a pretty chilling watch the Other night Gary .

How good was the way he took you through the presumption of guilt to the likleyhood of innocence ?

The tape at the end was just gut wrenching in that a man faced
death right in the face all those years previous over this mess.

Hi Graham,

As a postscript to the story, Randall Adams passed away of a brain tumor on
Oct 30 2010 but the New York Times did not learn and report of his passing until June 25 2011.
See http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/26/us/26adams.html

In 2001 at a legislative hearing, Adams said -

Originally Posted by Randall Adams

"The man you see before you is here by the grace of God. The fact that it took 12 and a half years and a movie to prove my innocence should scare the hell out of everyone in this room, and if it doesn’t, then that scares the hell out of me.”

You can read about the ultimate fate of David Harris here -
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thin_Blue_Line_(film)

Errol Morris is still an active film maker. In 1991 he made a documentary on
Stephen Hawking and his book "A Brief History of Time". I saw it at the cinema
at the time and I don't ever recollect it being shown on Australian television.
A poor print of it appears here on YouTube -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeaIHB5mBqU

However, if you were moved by "The Thin Blue Line", I wholeheartedly
recommend Errol Morris's 2003 documentary "The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons
from the Life of Robert S. McNamara". You should still be able to find copies
in stock at stores such as JB HiFi in the documentary section.

Compulsory viewing for all students of the history of the 1960's and all modern
political decision makers and strategists.
It too has a beautiful haunting original soundtrack by Phillip Glass.
It went on to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature, so what
more can I say?
Two minute trailer here -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcAyzbMvF7k